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THE NORTHERN 



SUGAR CANE MANUAL 

yv\jJUnMj( G . 

By Professors, WEBER ck A SCOVELL. 





WITH DESCRIPTION OF THE 



AMERICAN SUGAR MACHINERY 



MANUFACTURED BY 




GEO. L. SQUIER, 

BUFFALO, N. Y. 

COPTEIG-HTED, 1883, 3B75T GEO. X*. SQ-CrXE^. 
Press of The Courier Company, Buffalo, N. Y. 




GEO. L. SQUIER, BUFFALO, N. Y. 



CUBA. 

PERU. 

SI AM. 

JAVA. 

FIJI. 

CHINA. 

INDIA. 

SPAIN. 

EGYPT. 

NATAL. 

HAITI. 

BRAZIL. 

MEXICO. 

FRANCE. 

GUIANA. 

E Q U A D O R. 

BOLIVIA. 

LIBERIA. 

ENGLAND. 

JAMAICA. 

ANTIGUA. 

C U R A C O A. 

HONDURAS. 

TRINIDAD. 

BARBADOS. 

AUSTRALIA. 

GUA TE MALA. 

NICARAGUA. 

VENEZUELA. 

COSTA RICA. 

PORTO RICO. 

SAN DOMING O; 

SAN SALVADOR. 

TRANSVAAL REPUBLIC. 

SANDWICH ISLANDS. 

PHILIPPINE ISLANDS. 

ARGENTINE CONFEDERACY. 

CAPE DE VERDE ISLANDS. 

UNITED STATES OF COLOMBIA. 

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 

List of Countries and Islands in which the Patent Plantatio: 
Machinery manufactured hy GEO. L. SQUIER, of Buffalo, N. Y. 
is now in use. 






IXTEODUCTIOK 



Three important questions seem to be fully settled in reference to the Northern 
Sugar Cane. 1st. That the plant will withstand the vicissitudes of our northern 
climate, and can be successfuly grown wherever Indian corn can be grown, and is 
one of the surest crops that the farmer can raise. 2d. That from it can be raised 
not only a pure, healthy, finely-flavored Cane Syrup, but that Pure Cane Sugar, 
in paying quantities, can be manufactured from it with as absolute certainty as 
from the tropical cane. The results of last season's work at Champaign, 111., and at 
Rio Grande, N. J., prove it, and verify the experiments and predictions made by 
Prof. Stewart, and the Commissioner of Agriculture long before. 3d. That it is 
one of the most profitable crops that the farmer can grow, as the experience of 
hundreds of farmers during the last three years has abundantly proved. 

These vital questions having been settled favorably, it follows naturally and 
necessarily that it will be adopted as a staple crop by the intelligent farmers of the 
country, and within a few years be cultivated nearly or quite as extensively as 
Indian corn, or until the $130,000,000 we now pay for foreign sweets is saved to the 
country. 

In the infancy of an industry so important there will be thousands seeking 
information as to the best methods of culture and manipulation, and the best 
machinery for manufacturing the crop. For such inquirers this manual is prepared. 

Professors Weber and Scovell, late chemists of the Illinois State University, 
of Champaign, 111., have, during the past three years, conducted a series of minute 
and exhaustive experiments in the culture and working of the Northern Sugar 
Cane, and their success in conducting the operations of the Champaign Sugar 
Works, during the past year, has become widely known, and has given a new 
impetus to this industry. We therefore deem ourselves fortunate in being able to 
present from their pens a condensed treatise, giving the results of their experiments 
and experience, in a shape to aid those who are seeking light on this subject. We 
feel confident that their treatise will be read with great pleasure and profit by all 
who are interested in this new industry, especially by those who contemplate the 
manufacture of sugar. 

We have added a description of the machinery needed by those who desire 
only to make syrup, together with directions for setting up and working the 
machinery. 

We have frequent inquiries for seed, but as we do not deal in seed, it may be of 
benefit to those seeking it to say that reliable seed can be procured of C. F. Miller, 
Dundas, Minn. ; C. D. Roberts, Fairfield, Wayne County, 111. ; S. H. Kinsey, Rush, 
Monroe County, N. Y. ; X. K. Stout, Troy, Kan., or James Lawson, Roxbury, Kan. 

With greetings to our many friends throughout the country, we wish them a 
prosperous season, and commend to them a careful study of the following pages. 



NORTHERN SUGAR-CANE MANUAL 



BY PROFESSORS WEBER AND SCOVELL. 



THE NORTHERN SUGAR CANE INDUSTRY. 

Through the results obtained at the sugar worKs at Champaign, 111., and Rio 
Grande, N. J., in the production of sugar from Northern cane, on a commercial scale, 
during the season of 1882, a new impetus has been given to the Northern cane indus- 
try. The press of the country, as well as private individuals, have followed the 
development of these results with an unusual degree of interest. The cause of this 
general manifestation of sympathy with the efforts made in this direction will be 
found in the widespread conviction that, in a country like ours, so rich in agricultural 
resources, with such a variety of climate and soil, and with the proverbial enterprise 
of the American people, we should not be dependent upon foreign countries for nine- 
tenths of the sugar we consume. Sugar has long since ceased to be regarded as an 
article of luxury, but as one of the most important and necessary food products. 
From an agricultural and economic point of view, the benefits, which would be 
derived by the home production of the immense quantities of sugar and molasses 
annually imported into this country, is simply incalculable. We are now entering 
upon a new epoch in the history of Northern sugar cane. The production of sugar 
from several varieties of this plant has passed beyond the realm of experiment, and 
is now an assured success. The great expanse of territory in which Northern sugar 
cane can be grown profitably, its ready adaptability to all kinds of soil, its hardiness 
to withstand the vicissitudes of our climate, the easy and inexpensive methods of its 
cultivation, the certainty and ease with which the best of sugar and syrup can be 
made from it, when the proper machinery, in connection with the necessary skill and 
intelligence is applied, all these things taken together force us to look upon the 
Northern sugar cane as the source of our future supply of sugar. 

SEED FOR PLANTING. 

Great care should be exercised in the selection of seed for planting. Those heads 
which ripen first and at the same time should be selected for this purpose, as this 
will insure a more uniform development of the crop the next year. Three to four 
pounds of seed per acre is sufficient. Seed should be obtained from a different 
locality every two or three years. In procuring seed reliable dealers only should be 
consulted, and even then the germinating quality of the seed should be tested before 
planting. 

VARIETIES OF CANE FOR SUGAR. 

The early-maturing varieties of Northern cane present no great differences in 
their sugar-producing qualities. The Early Amber is, without doubt, the best variety 



of this plass to plant, because it has come into general use, so that good seed can 
readily be obtained. The late-maturing varieties differ widely in their chemical 
composition, some being utterly unfit for the production of sugar, while others nearly 
approach the Early Amber in the per cent, of cane sugar they contain. The late- 
maturing varieties, as a class, are much larger and yield about one-half more per acre 
than the early varieties, and, where the climate permits, should always be planted 
for the latter part of the working season. Of the late varieties we would recommend 
the following in the order given : Link's Hybrid, Early Orange, Liberian. 

SOIL, PLANTING AND CULTURE. 

Northern sugar cane can be grown successfully on a great variety of soils, as the 
following analyses of Early Amber cane will show : 

Sp Gr. of Cane Grape 

Juice. Sugar. Sugar. 

1. Old prairie soil, average of 5 anal 1.070 11.28 2.94 

2. Virgin prairie, " 2 " 1.071 12.77 3.46 

3. Timber land, " 6 " 1.072 12.87 3.07 

4. Sand land, " 2 " 1.060 12.30 2.39 

From these analyses it will be seen that in the case of the sand land the specific 
gravity of the juice is much lower than that of the other varieties of soil, while the 
per cent, of saccharine matter is practically the same. This proves that the juice is 
more free from foreign matter, and hence this kind of soil is specially adapted to the 
raising of Northern cane. With the process for making sugar used at Champaign, 
however, even the cane grown on the rich virgin prairie soil offers no impediment to 
thorough defecation and subsequent crystallization of the sugar. 

Fresh barn-yard manure is very objectionable, and should never be employed the 
same year cane is grown. Mineral fertilizers, especially superphosphates, shorten 
the time for maturing the cane and increase the per cent, of sugar. The soil should 
be plowed deep and thoroughly pulverized, and the planting of the seed should follow 
the preparation of the soil immediately, so as to prevent the weeds getting a start. 

Plant early. The first planting should not be more than one-half inch deep. 
Later in the season, when the soil -is dry and warm, one inch is not too deep. 

Plant in rows 3)^ feet apart, or in check rows about 3^£ feet each way. 

Owing to the fact that the young cane plant is weak and slender and grows slowly 
in the start, it will be found necessary on all foul lands to give the crop one thorough 
hoeing to keep down the weeds, otherwise the cultivation does not differ from that of 
Indian corn. 

STRIPPING. 

In working up large crops of cane, the question of stripping becomes an impor- 
tant one, as it requires more help and costs more than all the rest of the harvesting 
put together. It is a fact that the leaves increase the amount of feculent matter in 
the juice; but we have found that, with the new process of defecation (to be de- 
scribed further on), this difficulty can be readily overcome, and that grinding the cane 
with the leaves does not interfere with the quality of the products and the process 
of manufacture. Of course, if the stripping can be done cheaply by machinery, it 
would be best to strip ; but, rather than do it by hand, we would prefer to grind the 
cane with the leaves, where large amounts of cane are to be handled. For small 
operations it is better to strip the cane. 



HARVESTING. 

In ordinary seasons, with the hot summer weather prevalent in the great corn belt 
of the Northwest, the development of the cane keeps pace with the formation of the 
seed, and the maximum of cane sugar is reached when the seed is in the " hardening 
dough." After this stage is reached the amount of cane sugar gradually diminishes 
as the cane is allowed to stand. The following table, which gives the average results 
of a large number of analyses, will illustrate this point : 

Stage of Development. Grape Sugar. Cane Sugar. 

Beginning to head 7.04 4.10 

In blossom 5.76 7.77 

Seed soft and milky.. .,, 4.80 8.56 

Seed in hardening dough 3.14 12.19 

Seed quite ripe •• . . 2.85 11.18 

In the season of 1882, with its cold, wet summer weather, the development of the 
cane sugar did not take place as rapidly as the formation of the seed, and the quality 
of the juice was found to change for the better, even for two or three weeks after the 
hardening dough stage was reached. The proper time for cutting the cane for mak- 
ing sugar should be determined by actual analysis made by the chemist in charge of 
the sugar works. 

When cane is cut and allowed to remain in this condition before it is worked up, 
a gradual inversion of the cane sugar into grape sugar takes place, and in the course 
of time not a trace of cane sugar remains. This change takes place more rapidly in 
warm weather than in cold. Under no circumstances, when working for sugar, 
should the cane be cut more than twenty-four hours in advance of grinding. It 
should be taken to the mill and crushed as fast as it is cut. 

MANUFACTURE OF SUGAR. 

Northern cane juice is, with the single exception of the sugar beet, the most diffi- 
cult to properly treat of any substance from which sugar is at present made. It is 
unnecessary to state that, in view of this fact, the production of sugar can be made 
largely profitable only by using the most approved machinery, including mills, defe- 
cators, evaporators, filters, vacuum pans, centrifugals, etc. ; by adopting that process 
of manufacture which has been shown by actual results obtained to be reliable : and 
by employing a competent chemist who fully understands the process, as well as the 
manipulation of the machinery, and who is able to cope with the difficulties arising 
from the varying conditions of the juice, and from unforeseen irregularities in run- 
ning the works. 

The machinery necessary to fully equip a sugar plant, so as to insure satisfactory 
.esults, is, as a general thing, very expensive ; and, for this reason, the manufacture 
of sugar cannot be conducted on a small scale. The capacity of a plant should be at 
least 500 or 600 acres of cane in a season of sixty days. 



DEFECATION. 

This is the first and most important step in the treatment of cane juice for sugar. 
The juice, in its normal condition, is acid, and it is well known that a solution of cane 
sugar heated in presence of an acid is changed into invert or uncrystallizable sugar. 
The amount of inversion which takes place depends upon the quality of the juice 
and the time required for evaporation. It is evident from this that the acid must be 
neutralized in the beginning of the process of defecation. Lime is the best and 
cheapest neutralizing agent. As the quality of the juice varies in different kinds of 
cane, and from time to time in the same variety, no definite proportion of juice and 
lime can be fixed upon. The point of exact neutralization should be determined by 
trial, using litmus paper as a test. Too much lime acts deleteriously in two ways : 
it causes undue discoloration of the syrup, and, by eliminating caustic potash, redis- 
solves a portion of the coagulated nitrogenous matter, and thus prevents thorough 
defecation. In the open defecators, as ordinarily used, only that portion of the fecu- 
lent matter is gotten rid of, which coagulates at the boiling point of the juice. On 
evaporating this defecated juice a continual rising of scum or separation of feculent 
matter ensues, as the boiling point of the Irlquor rises. This must either be removed 
by constant skimming or allowed to subside in settling tanks. To obviate this diffi- 
culty, we have employed a 

NEW PROCESS OF DEFECATION, 

Which, we hope, will be a great aid in establishing this new industry. The juice, 
after proper neutralization with lime, is run into cylindrical vessels, four feet in 
diameter and eight feet high, made of boiler iron and closed at both ends. When 
filled to within one foot of the top, the vessel is closed, and heat applied by means of 
a vertical copper coil on the inside. The liquor is thus heated in the start to the 
temperature of boiling syrup, 230 degrees Fahrenheit, and the feculent matter, 
which usually separates out on evaporation, is gotten rid of at once. The pressure 
upon the surface of the liquor prevents ebulition, consequently no scum rises to the 
surface ; but all the feculent matter sinks to the bottom in a compact mass, above 
which the clear liquor can be drawn off. It is evident that if the vessel were opened 
or the liquor drawn off while the temperature remains above the boiling point, ebuli- 
tion would take place and the sediment be agitated. The cooling of so large a body 
of liquor by radiation, would require several hours more time than necessary for the 
settling of the sediment. To save this time, as well as the heat required to raise 
the temperature of the liquor from 212 to 230 degrees, we connect the top of the 
defecator with the steam supply, and turn on steam as soon as the liquor is ready to 
be drawn off. By this means the pressure on the surface is kept constant and ebuli- 
tion avoided. Tbe excess of heat is employed for evaporation as soon as the liquor 
escapes into the air. When the clear liquor is all drawn off, the sediment is removed 
through an opening in the bottom of the defecator. 

In this process all skimming, both in defecating and evaporating, is dispensed 
with. 

SEMI-SYRUP AND GRANULATION. 

The semi-syrup obtained by evaporating the defecated juice, is still far from being 
pure enough for the successful production of sugar. It contains a part of the nitrog- 
enous matter, the gum and all of the soluble starch and mineral matter originally 



6 

present in the juice. For further purification the semi-syrup is filtered through 
bone-coal, or its equivalent, and then it is ready tor evaporation to mush sugar or 
melado in the vacuum pan. During the past season we made twenty-six strikes with 
our vacuum pan, and in every case granulation of the sngar was effected in the pan 
the crystals being started with part of a charge, and built up as is done in sugar- 
houses. 

SEED. 

The seed product is destined to play an important part in making the Northern 
cane industry a commercial success. The composition of seed, according to our 
analysis, is as follows : 

Sugar 0.56 

Starch 63.09 

Fiber 6.35 

Water ' 12.51 

Ash 0.64 

Albuminoids 7 . 35 

Oil 3.08 

Tannin 5. 42 

Total 99.00 

The only marked difference between this seed and Indian corn is in the tannin 
which it contains. It is possible that this ingredient would interfere with its use as 
food for animals, on account of its costive properties, although this evil effect could be 
avoided to a great extent by grinding and boiling the seed. There is one use, how- 
ever, to which it is eminently adapted, and that is the manufacture of glucose. In our 
process, the glucose is prepared directly from the seed, and all the work can be done 
with the same machinery used in making sugar, except that a mill for crushing the 
seed would have to be supplied. 

Much has been said about the unhealthfulness of commercial glucose. When 
properly made it consists of grape sugar and dextrine, almost free from mineral salts 
and entirely free from acids. When sold as such, it is as legitimate, important and 
healthy an article of food as the syrups obtained from other sources. The public 
taste is in favor of a mild, light-colored table syrup, and this quality can be attained 
by the use of pure glucose better than in any other way. 

SKILLED HELP. 

It seems almost superfluous to state that a manufacturing establishment embody 
ing so many intricate processes, can never be successfully carried on without a com- 
petent man at the head, who is familiar with operations and chemical changes 
taking place in all their details. In a plant, with a capacity of 500 to 1,000 acres, 
turning out a thousand dollars worth of goods per day, a few days' mismanagement 
in any one step of the process, would entail a loss much greater than the sum neces- 
sary to pay the salary of a skilled chemist for the whole working season. The man- 
ufacturers of glucose employ chemists, at a high salary, to superintend their worK 
Other branches of industry follow the same example. If in this new industry 
plants should be erected, and manufacturing attempted without the requisite knowl- 
edge and skill, failure will surely be the result. 



RESULTS OBTAINED IN THE SEASON OF 1882 AT THE CHAMPAIGN 

SUGAR WORKS. 

Thinking that it would not be uninteresting, we herewith give some statistics, with 
the consent of the Champaign Sugar Company, of results obtained at their works 
during the year 1882 : 

Total number of acres worked 244^ 

" tons of stripped and topped cane 2,282% 

Average number of tons per acre 9% 

Number of acres worked for syrup alone 59 

" " " sugar and molasses 185J£ 

tons *' " " " 1,724 

pounds of sugar made 86,600 

gallons of molasses and syrup 25,650 

pounds of sugar per acre 465^ 

acres of early amber 195^ 

" " " orange 49 

Owing to the cold and wet season, the juice was much inferior to that of ordinary 
years, and then we only worked for firsts ; did not make any seconds, as we would 
have done if the plant had been properly equipped. 

We kept separate, and are able to give, the results obtained from a field of 12J£ 
acres of early orange. The juice was good for the season, but not above the aver- 
age of an ordinary season : 

Tons of cane stripped and topped 151 

Number of pounds of sugar 9,600 

" gallons of molasses 1,450 

" pounds of sugar per acre 768 

" gallons of molasses '* 116 

The sugar and molasses produced by the process under which we work are 
entirely free from the sorghum taste. 

In color and crystal, the sugar compares favorably with the best grades of New 
Orleans sugar, and has sold side by side with the Southern sugars, giving entire 
satisfaction. 

The following analyses will show the comparative value of this sugar : 
" Champaign Sugar Company : 

Herewith you will please find statement of the relative value of the sugar made 
by your company and certain other designated kinds: 

Kind. 

Champaign sugar 

Best refined 

Extra Yellow C 

White Extra C 

Yours truly, H. B. SLAUSON, Chemist." 

From the results obtained during the past season, the profitable manufacture of 
sugar from Northern sugar cane can no longer be questioned. The establishment 
of a new industry, of the magnitude which this is destined to assume, bas-ed directly 
upon the agricultural interests of the country, and benefitting alike the farmer, 
laborer, manufacturer and the country in general, should excite the encouragement 
of all. 

Champaign, III., January 25, 1883. H. A. WEBER. 

M. A. SCOVELL. 



r Per Cent. 


Moisture Per Cent, 


97.40 


1.50 


99.50 


0. 


87.40 


5.21 


86.60 


6.19 



8 

The foregoing treatise by Professors Weber and Scovell is full of valuable 
information in reference to the cultivation of cane and will be read with profit by 
every cane grower. Their directions for working the cane into sugar are intended 
more particularly for large, 

CENTRAL FACTORIES. 

and will be found very useful to those who contemplate the erection of such 
Factories. The tendency of the industry now seems to be towards the establishment 
of such Factories and they have many advantages. The amount of work done by 
them warrants the necessary outlay for the most perfect and complete machinery, 
and the employment of the best skill. The Factory affords a good market for all 
the cane that is raised within a reasonable distance around it, and beyond that dis- 
tance, the farmer with inexpensive machinery can work his cane into semi-syrup, 
and take it to the Factory to be worked into sugar. Many such Factories are being 
built in the West this season, and the day seems not far distant when Sugar Factories 
will be as plenty as Cheese Factories now are. But before and after the establish, 
ment of these Factories the great majority of farmers will need their own 
machinery for making syrup and semi-syrup, and we therefore proceed to describe 
such machinery, which may be divided into two general classes, viz. : steam 

MACHINERY and ANIMAL POWER MACHINERY. 

STEAM MACHINERY. 

There is no doubt but the best results may be obtained by the use of steam, as 
it gives a steady and untiring power to drive the mill, and in defecating and 
evaporating gives the operator absolute control of the heat so as to render every 
step certain. Yet steam machinery is so expensive that no farmer will desire to 
purchase it unless he can do so without running into debt, and has sufficient work to 
keep it busy during the grinding season. The machinery needed for a steam set 
is a strong horizontal mill, double back-geared ; a strong, simple engine ; a boiler of 
four to five times the capacity needed to drive the mill, in order to furnish an 
abundance of steam for defecation and evaporation ; two steam defecators to be 
worked alternately, a steam evaporator and a steam finisher. If it is intended to 
make sugar, a small vacuum pan should take the place of the steam finisher, and a 
centrifugal should be added. If the mill cannot be so located as to allow the juice 
to be spouted to the tanks, defectators and evaporators, a juice pump will also be 
required. Of course, the usual tanks, filters, coolers, etc., will be needed, but these 
are usually made on the farm, sets of steam machinery of this description can be 
procured of various sizes for from $2,000, upwards. 

ANIMAL POWER SETS. 

Farmers who have no more than fifty acres of cane to work will generally be 
contented with animal power sets, and all those who have had no experience in 
working cane should begin with such sets, as their mistakes will be much less 
expensive than with steam sets. Animal power sets are comparatively cheap, and 
with them, any man of " gumption " can make an excellent article of syrup, and 
often sugar enough for his own use. A mill and fire evaporator, with the necessary 
tanks, filters, coolers, etc., are all that is needed, and with these every farmer can 
provide his own sweets, as well as manufacture for his neighbors and for the 
market. Such sets can be procured for $100, up to $1,000, according to size and 
style. 

THE POINTS OF A GOOD MILL. 

Whatever the size or style of mill, the first thing to be considered is strength. 
Few people realize the pressure required to grind cane as clean as it ought to be. 
An ordinary two-horse mil] fxerts a pressure of ten to twenty tons when fully fed, 
and if over-fed and clogged much more than that, and if the mill is not very strong 
something must break. Probably three-fourths of the mills in use last season broke 
down, entailing expense, delay and vexation upon their owners. 

But breakage is not the only fault of a weak mill. It necessarily leaves a 
large per cent, of the juice in the bagasse. Growing pane, stripping, harvesting 
and milling, and still leaving one-half of the best juice in the bagasse pile is poor 
economy. Yet that is just what a large portion of the cane growers are doing. No 
man can afford to use a weak mill if it is given to him. Of course, a strong, well 
made mill, will cost more than a cheap made weak one, and those who look more at 
the price than at the quality of the mill will continue to buy the cheap affairs, and 



9 

break down and lose juice, time, and money enough to buy two good mills every 
year. But there are men who know that a good mill is cheapest in the end, and 
to aid such in their choice we will indicate the most important points for them to 
examine. 

1st. The shafts or journals should be wrought iron, and extra heavy in 
proportion to the size of the rollers, all the pressure of the rollers is carried by the 
shafts, and in addition, they have the twisting strain necessary to impart motion to the 
rollers. A cast iron shaft is worthless, and a small wrought iron shaft is a delusion. 
A large proportion of the mills in market have shafts so weak as to render them 
absolutely worthless. Other things being equal, select the mill that has the 
strongest shafts. 

2d. The journals should run in brass or gun metal boxes. There is nothing 
else that will stand the pressure and wear so well. 

3d. Strong wrought iron stay-bolts should brace the mill and hold every 
part firm, and should be so arranged as to take a large portion of the strain. 

4th. Very heavy Gears with strong teeth should be used, and they should 
have extra heavy hubs. Farmers frequently trust the handling of the mill to hired 
help who know nothing of the proper handling of machinery, and are as likely to 
take a meat axe to drive a key with as anything else, and are thus very sure to split 
an ordinary hub and then lay the fault to the machine. Any gear that was ever 
made can be split by driving the key, and machinists understand this, and drive 
very carefully with a light hammer. An extra heavy hub reduces the danger of 
breakage by inexperienced persons. 

5th. The housings or side frames should be made very strong and heavy so as 
to withstand any strain that may be brought upon them. 

6th. One of the most important features of a cane mill is the turn-plate or 
scraper which guides the cane from the feed roll to the bagasse roll. Some 
manufacturers, who do not understand the proper construction of a cane mill, send 
out their mills without any turn-plate whatever, and the frequent choking and 
breakage of such mills proves conclusively that the triangular space between the 
three rollers will fill up with cane, and choke, unless proper provision is made for 
guiding the cane across this space. Others realizing the necessity for such 
provision, but having little knowledge or experience put in turn-plates that are 
entirely inadequate to the work, and break down and choke upon the slightest 
provocation. It requires long experience and much experiment and care to adapt a 
turn-plate to a mill so that it will do its work without choking and breaking. It 
should be very strong and easily adjustable to the movements of the rollers. This 
is an important point which should be thoroughly examined by every purchaser 
of a mill. 

7th. Self-adjusting rollers have so many important advantages over rigid 
rollers that they have come into general favor, and many of the most experienced 
operators cannot be induced to buy or use a rigid mill. The self-adjusting rollers 
compensate for the inequalities of feed and take out a larger per cent, of juice, do 
away with the jumping and jerking of rigid mills and make the mill run steady and 
smoothly, lessen the power necessary to drive the mill, and greatly lessen the 
liability of breakage. 

8th. The general form, style and workmanship of the mill should be 
looked after. By examining the form and workmanship of a piece of machinery it 
can be generally ascertained whether it was made as cheap as possible to sell to 
greenhorns or made for service ;. whether it was made by a mechanic or a bungler. 

These are the most important points to be looked after in selecting a mill. 
Another point on which many purchasers make a grave mistake is in selecting too 
small A mill for the work they wish to do. Nine men out of ten who use a mill 
wish they had a larger one. A mill of larger capacity than is actually needed has 
many advantages and is cheaper in the end. It costs little if any more to run it, 
enables the operator to work without crowding and hurry, and in this way does 
away with much of the liability of breakage. It permits taking advantage of the 
weather, or hurrying up in case of threatening weather or frost, and enables him to 
increase his production if desired without buying a new mill. Therefore in select- 
ing a mill care should be used not to choose too small a one. If a man has not the 
means to buy a good mill of ample size for his purposes, he had better hire his cane 
worked up until he acquires means sufficient to buy a rig that will not be a con- 
tinual source of expense, trouble and vexation. 



10 

But when lie has bought his mill he should remember that however much care 
and good judgment he has used in selecting it, it will all be nullified by neglecting 
to use the same care and good judgment in running it, or by trusting it to be run by 
incompetent persons. The best mill can be easily spoiled by carelessness or 
ignorance. No machine that was ever made is proof against bad management. 
The manufacturer cannot furnish brains to run his machines, nor make an educated 
engineer of every man who undertakes to run them, and when a man undertakes to 
run a machine that he knows nothing about he must get his education at his own 
risk and expense. If he undertakes to key on a gear with a meat axe or sledge 
hammer he will be very likely to spoil his gear. If he runs a stick of wood or a 
wrench, hammer or crowbar, through his mill the chances are that something will 
break. If he fails to keep the nuts tight and the journals well oiled he will be sure 
to meet with trouble sooner or later. If he fails to properly adjust his rollers 
and adjust his turn-plate, after he has adjusted his rollers, he will fail to get 
the proper per cent, of juice, and may clog his mill. Two mills as near alike as 
human ingenuity can make them may be put into the hands of two neighbors 
and one will run through the season without the least trouble or delay, while the 
other may have trouble all the time, simply because there is no " gumption " in the 
man running it. Yet this man thinks he has as much or a little more "gumption " 
than his neighbor. For evils of this nature there is no remedy. Such men are a 
damage to the business, to the machinery and to themselves, but the world is full of 
them and all kinds of business has to take its chances with them. 

THE VARIOUS STYLES OF MILLS. 

For animal power there are two distinct classes of mills, viz., vertical and 
horizontal. Both kinds have three rollers arranged triangularly, with turn-plates 
to conduct the cane through the triangular space between the three rollers, and the 
cane gets two pressures. 

Vertical Mills can be afforded cheaper than Horizontal Mills of the same 
weight and strength, and if they are made very strong answer a good purpose for 
small operators. They are not as convenient to feed as Horizontal Mills and work 
slow, as they have only one revolution of the rollers to one of the team. 

But for rapid, efficient and economical work and the best results Horizontal 
Mills are far better than any Vertical Mills that can be made and are generally 
used by all experienced operators. Having two revolutions of the rollers to one of 
the team they work much more rapidly, are fed more naturally and easily to the 
full capacity of the rollers, and deliver the juice more readily and savingly from the 
crushed stalks. If they are made to run with sweeps attached directly to the mill 
(and this saves purchasing a separate Horse Power) they need to be made very stout 
to withstand the twist and strain upon them. Such mills cannot be made cheap and 
be good for anything; but a good, stout, heavy, well-made Horizontal Mill is worth 
any four Vertical Mills that can be made, as every man will testify who has used 
both kinds. 

Horizontal animal power mills are of three kinds, viz.: those with sweep 
above, those with sweep below, and those arranged to be driven by separate 
horse-power. Each kind has its special advantages and each man must determine 
for himself which is best for the particular circumstances under which he desires to 
use it. 

The sweep-above mill is best when it is desired to set the mill on the gronnd 
or in the lower story of a building, or when it is desired to move the mill from place 
to place. 

The sweep-below mill is arranged to run in the second story of a building 
while the team works on the floor below. This is a very convenient arrangement. 
The team and sweeps being out of the way, the cane can be piled conveniently near 
the mill, feed table and baggasse carriers can be used, and the elevation permits the 
juice to be carried in pipes to the tanks, defecators and evaporators. 

The separate-power mill has all the advantages of the sweep-below mill 
with the additional advantages that it can be set either on a level with the Horse 
Power or in the story above as desired, that any desired speed can be given to the 
rollers and that it is adapted to run by steam power if at any future time steam is 
used. 

The separate horsepowers to drive such mills should have a slow motion and 
be made very strong. The ordinary Horse-Powers in market are too flimsy for such 
work. If a Thrashing Machine Power is used a double back-gear will be required 
to get the motion of the rollers slow enough. 



11 

Steam mills are always horizontal. They should be made of extra strength in 
proportion to the work they have to do, so as to be able to stall the engine without 
breaking. If a quick stroke engine is used they should have a double back-gear in 
order to get the speed of the rollers slow enough. The best speed for the rollers is 
from 18 to 22 feet surface speed per minute. 

SETTING UP AND WORKING THE MILL. 

The main thing in setting up and working a Vertical Mill is to have a firm 
foundation. The posts should be attached by plank cross-pieces spiked on in 
bracing form, and this " crib " should be set at least five feet in the ground and the 
earth well packed down. The sweep should be very strong, and the lever end should 
be from ten to twelve feet long and the other end long and heavy enough to balance 
like an old-fashioned well sweep. 

Horizontal Mills should be firmly fastened, if upon a floor, by means of cleats 
and bolts ; if upon the ground, by means of timbers bedded in the ground and 
stakes. Oil thoroughly and often, using none but the be*t lard oil. Never br.ing 
kerosene oil near a cane mill. 

Start up carefully, at first without any cane, to see if everything is right, and 
get the horses used to the work. Then try a few stalks and adjust the rollers, then 
increase the feed slowly, until the gearing is worn a little smooth, and then if 
everything is right, — go ahead. 

Always feed the cane butt ends foremost. Clean the mill thoroughly and often, as 
fragments of cane left to sour and ferment about the mill may injure your whole 
batch of syrup, especially ifc intended for sugar. 

FILTERING. 

The necessity of thoroughly filtering the juice to remove all extraneous matter 
that can be removed by mechanical means is too often overlooked. The juice, as it 
comes from the mill, should run through a wire strainer and then through a filter. 
The filter is usually constructed on the farm, and the filtering material most com- 
monly used is straw or hay. This should be frequently renewed. As the j uice 
comes from the filter it is well to strain it through a filtering cloth. The filters, as 
well as all tanks, and the mill, should be frequently washed with lime water to pre- 
vent souring. Bone coal filters are used in sugar factories for filtering the syrup 
after it is boiled down to 25 deg. B. and before it goes to the vacuum pan, to take 
out whatever impurities remain after ordinary defecation. But these filters are too 
expensive for small operators 

DEFECATION. 

Thorough defecation is one of the most important and difficult points in making 
syrup or sugar, and yet it is the point most often neglected by ordinary operators. 
The juice is acid and filled with impurities, and the acid must be neutralized, and the 
impurities removed, at the earliest possible moment after the juice leaves the mill. 
Three or four hours' standing without defecation will spoil any juice, and one hour's 
standing will materially damage it. Lime is the best and cheapest agent for neutral- 
izing the acid. It is usually prepared like whitewash made about as thin as milk, 
and is used at about the rate of one pint to a barrel of juice. But many think the 
best results are obtained by preparing it by simply sprinkling enough water on the 
lime to slack it, and using a small measure, say, four inches square and one inch 
deep, to apply it with. The lime should be thoroughly stirred into the juice when 
cold or as it is being heated. As every batch of juice differs in acidity, no definite 
rule can be given as to the quantity of lime that should be used. Care should be 
taken not to use too much. Experience, guided by the use of litmus paper, must 
determine in each case just when the neutral point is reached. It is a trade that 
must be learned. A prejudice exists among inexperienced operators against the use 
of lime because it darkens the syrup. An excess of lime does darken the syrup too 
much, but just enough to neutralize the acid brings the syrup to the best merchant- 
able color. Experienced buyers will not touch light colored syrup because they 
know that it has not been limed and is acid. 

Steam defecators are best because the heat can be controlled and boiling pre- 
vented. But small operators generally defecate over a fire and use either separate 
defecators or defecate in one compartment of the evaporator. In defecating the 
juice is gradually brought up just to the boiling point, but never allowed to boil. 
As it comes up to the boiling point the feculent matter coagulates and rises and 
forms a thick blanket on top If a separate defecator is used this operation may be 



12 

repeated two or three times and then the heat withdrawn and the juice allowed to 
settle. The blanket of course should be skimmed oft each time. If the defecation 
is done in a portion of the evaporator, after the defecation is done as thoroughly as 
possible, the juice should pass on to be evaporated, and the boiling will throw up 
more of this feculent matter in the shape of scum, which should be removed as fast 
as a blanket is formed. Be careful in skimming not to stir the scum into the juice. 

EVAPORATORS. 

Heat is an active agent in inverting sugar, yet heat must be used for evapo- 
ration. Too high a degree of heat will burn the syrup, so evaporation is surrounded 
by limitations. The less time the juice is exposed to the heat, or the lower the degree 
of heat used, the less the inversion. For this reason the best evaporator yet devised 
is the vacuum pan, because the removal of the pressure of the atmosphere enables 
the evaporation to be done rapidly with a low heat ; but vacuum pans are too expen 
sive for small operations. Next to vacuum pans in point of merit are steam evapo 
rators, because with these the heat is under absolute control ; but steam evaporators 
are beyond the reach of a majority of farmers, who use animal power mills and 
must use open fire evaporators. A good fire evaporator can be made to do good work 
economically, but the trouble is that a large portion of the evaporators in use are 
made by Tom, Dick and Harry, who know nothing of the actual requirements of the 
case, and as a natural consequence very few of the evaporators in use can do good 
work. In small operations a large portion of the defecation is done in the evapo 
rator, so that a properly constructed evaporator must provide for the three distinct 
operations of Defecating, Evaporating and Finishing. , 

The first of these processes is defecation or the removal of the foreign and dele 
terious particles from the juices. This should be done over a slow fire that raises 
the juice gradually to the boiling point, giving ample time for the extraneous matter 
to be thrown up in the form of scum and removed. Intense heat and violent boiling 
in this part of the process is fatal, as it boils the deleterious substances into the 
syrup so that it cannot afterwards be removed by any ordinary process. 

The second process is desiccation or the evaporation of the watery portion of the 
juice. This process should be accomplished with all possible speed, for the longer 
the syrup is subjected to high heat the darker will be its color and the poorer its 
quality. Therefore this process should be conducted over the hottest part of the 
fire, and the juice should be spread out over a greater surface so as to have a thinner 
body, and thereby increase the rapidity of evaporation Care should also be taken 
not to burn the syrup in this process. 

When the juice is evaporated down to about 25 deg Baume, the last or finishing 
process commences. And in this process the heat must be absolutely under the con 
trol of the operator, for in this process is the great liability and danger of scorching. 
Here a low heat is required, and the syrup gradually cooked down to about 38 deg. 
Baume, when it is drawn oft into the coolers In both the evaporating and finishing 
processes some skimming will be necessary, unless the defecating process has been 
very thorough. 

Good, thick, heavy sheet iron is the best material for evaporators on account of 
its cheapness, durability and efficiency. Many beginners have the fallacious idea 
that iron discolors the syrup. An old sugar maker would laugh at such an idea. In 
tropical countries the juice is defecated in iron defecators, evaporated in iron kettles 
and finished in iron vacuum pans, with never a thought of discoloration If the 
evaporator is kept clean there is not the remotest danger of discoloration from using 
iron pans, and if it is not kept clean the syrup will be discolored in any kind of 
metal. 

Galvanized pans are always made too thin for durability ; the zinc with which 
they are covered wears off soon, but while it remains it is one of the poorest con 
ductors of heat known. Copper pans have the advantages that they are easier kept 
clean and that copper is a better conductor of heat than iron, but they are too expen 
sive for ordinary operators and are not enough better than iron to pay the difference 
in cost. 

Some manufacturers, to save a little in the cost of pans, make the sides and ends 
of wood, which is a constant source of trouble to the operator For if the joints do 
not leak from the first, the wood soon chars next to the iron, and the nails burn out, 
and there is constant leakage and constant tinkering. Besides the impurities work 
into the cracks, where it is impossible to clean them out, and there ferment, and 
sour, and taint, and injure the whole syrup. Evaporators should be thoroughly 
cleaned every night, and kept as sweet and clean as a good dairy woman keep* her 
milk-pans. 



13 



THE AMERICAN SUGAR CANE MACHINERY. 



The rapid growth of the Northern Sugar Cane industry has brought into 
market mills, evaporators, etc., made by parties having no experience nor knowledge 
ol the proper construction of such machinery. Manufacturers of the old sorghum 
machinery of twenty years ago, in ignorance of the progress that has been made 
since, are also bringing out their old sorghum mills and evaporators and trying to 
work them off. As a result the market is flooded with mills that break down and 
evaporators that fail to give satisfaction, and hundreds of farmers are victimized. 

No man is capable of constructing good sugar machinery unless he has full and 
accurate knowledge of the best machinery in use in sugar producing countries where 
the art of sugar making has been made a study for many years, and has had long 
experience in manufacturing this class of machinery, and intelligence enough to 
keep up with the improvements that are made every year, and enterprise enough to 
make and adopt improvements, and opportunity to test his machinery by the side of 
the best machinery in the world. 

The manufacturer of the American Cane Machinery has been engaged for over 
thirty years in manufacturing agricultural implements, and for the past fifteen years 
has made a specialty of sugar machinery for tropical countries, where the best sugar 
machinery in the world is used. His machinery has come into general use through- 
out the tropical world, and has been tested by years of use in many countries, by all 
kinds of people, with every variety of cane, and has had the advantages of the 
experience and suggestions of experts, engineers and planters of all sugar producing 
countries and has become the standard machinery of the world. In Appleton'sNew 
Encyclopedia of Mechanics his sugar mills are illustrated and described as the most 
perfect and approved sugar mills known to the mechanical world. He has introduced 
many important improvements in sugar machinery which he has patented in this and 
cthei countries, and his machinery is secured by over twenty patents. He manufac- 
tures ever seventy sizes and styles of sugar mills, every one constructed especially 
for grinding the hard tropical cane and used in tropical countries. He does not 
manufacture sorghum mills, and does not wish nor profess to compete with the 
weak cheap sorghum mills in market. He desires to work only for those who can 
appreciate good machinery and know the difference between a strong, well finished 
machine and a weak botch — who understand that a good machine costs more to make 
than a poor one, but is cheapest in the end. He has found that there are enough such 
men to give him all he can do, and he is proud to point to his machines in the hands 
ot nearly all the leaders m the industry, and proud of their encomiums upon it. 

The sizes of his mills and other machinery best adapted to the present condition 
ol the Northern cane industry are illustrated in the following pages, where each 
man can find the size best adapted to his own particular wants. Every one of the 
mills illustrated is a strong tropical cane sugar mill,, and is in use in tropical 
countries, and is worth a cart load of the ordinary sorghum mills in market, for 
practical use. 

He manufactures Evaporators of the most approved form, of various sizes to 
match his different sized mills. These Evaporators can be run with bagasse, straw 
or hay, if desired. He also manufactures Defecators, Steam Clarifiers, Centrifugals, 
Kettles, Juice Pumps, Saccharometers, and everything that is needed for a sugar 
plant. For driving his larger Sugar Mills he manufactures Horse-powers, Steam 
Engines and Water wheels of any sizes wanted. 

His foreign trade absorbs nearly the whole capacity of his factory, so that he will 
be able to make but a limited amount of machinery for the home trade this season, 
and those who want this class of machinery should get their orders in early or they 
may not be able to obtain it. Farmers can order direct of him, or through his 
agents, as they prefer. Price Lists will be furnished upon application to 

GEORGE L. SQUIER, 

Buffalo, N. Y. 



DISTINCTIVE FEATURES 

OP THB 

AMERICAN SUGAR CANE MILLS. 



Among the new principles and improvements which are embodied in the series of 
Sugar (Jane Mills manufactured by Geo. L. Squier & Bro., and which in so short a 
time have made them famous throughout all the sugar producing countries of the 
globe, the most prominent and important are the 

PATENT RUBBER SPRINGS, 

by means of which the rollers are made self-adjusting. Rubber springs, or cush 
Ions, nimilar to those used under cars, are applied to all our mills in such a manner 
that' the amount of pressure can be easily and accurately adjusted to the work to be 
done. By means of nuts and screws, these springs can be tightened so as to give any 
degree of elasticity, and, at the same time the greater the amount of cane passing 
through the rollers the greater will be the pressure. The rollers are thus made to 
adapt themselves perfectly to tlie amount of work to be done, and grind the cane thor 
oughly, whether the cane be fed light or heavy ; with heavy feeding there is no clog 
ging, with light feeding the rollers close up and press the cane thoroughly. An 
experience of several years in the use of these self-adjusting mills has abundantly 
proved that the rubber springs give them the following important advantages : 

1st. The rubber springs insure the perfect and even grinding of all the cane, wliether 
fed light or heavy, and remedy t/te evils of careless feeding. 

2d. The rubber springs prevent clogging and breaking from over-feeding. A large 
proportion of the breakages that occur in sugar mills are caused by over-feeding, and 
the rubber springs are exactly what is needed to save the mill in such a crisis. 

3d. The rubber springs facilitate the feeding, make it easier to feed large and 
small canes together, and, in a great measure, compensate for the carelessness of the 
feeder. 

4th. The rubber springs make the mill run steadier and easier. The springs bear 
the strain of unequal feeding instead of the power, and, by equalizing the pressure, 
remedy the jerking and unsteady motion common to the rigid mills. Hence the self- 
adjusting mills require much less power to drive them than the rigid mills of equal 
capacity. 

THE HEAVY WROUGHT IRON STAY BOLTS, 

In connection with the rubber springs, reduce the liability of breakage to the minimum 
point. By the peculiar arrangement of the stay bolts and springs, the straining pres- 
sure of the rollers is thrown upon wrought iron and rubber, while in most of the old 
Btyle rigid mills it is thrown upon treacherous cast iron. Hence, breakage is almost 
impossible under any ordinary usage of these mills, and their freedom from break 
age is a matter of comment and wonder with all who have had anything to do with 
them. This point will be thoroughly appreciated by all who have been annoyed by 
the breaking of a rigid mill in the midst of the grinding season. 

HEAVY WROUGHT IRON SHAFTS 
are used in all our mills. For the small mills the shafts are made of rolled iron, 
for the large mills, of steam forged car-axle iron. The shafts run in 

BRASS, STEEL, AND BABBITTED BOXES, 
which are very durable, and easily renewed when necessary. 

STRONG, HEAVY GEARING 
is used in all our mills proportionate to the capacity of the mills: and while In 

SHAPE, STYLE, AND FINISH 
our mills are unequaled by anything to be found in the market, the 

VERY LOW PRICES 
*t which we offer them place them beyond competition 



15 




PIONEER No. 1. 
PIONEER No. 2. 



THE PIONEER. 

Horizontal Hand-Power Mills. 

Two Rollers, 4*4. Weight, about 170 Lbs. 



Three Rollers, 5x5. "Weight, about 270 Lbs. 

With the advent of central factories the need of a good hand-mill to test the dif- 
ferent lots of cane as they come in, and for other experimental purposes, is impera- 
tive. There is also 'need of such mills for parties experimenting with different, 
varieties of cane or originating new varieties, and also for those who raise small 
patches of cane for family use. To supply this want we have constructed two sizes 
of hand-mills, illustrated above. They have ample strength for the capacity of the 
rollers and are constructed in every respect as perfectly and thoroughly as the large 
mills, and will extract about as large a per cent, of juice. 

An engineer in Trinidad, who has a No. 2 Pioneer, writes that he extracted 69 
per cent, of the weight of the cane in juice with it, and is greatly pleased with it. 
Professors Weber and Scovell used a No. 2 Pioneer at Champaign last season, and 
write : " Your little mill is a perfect gem. It is just what we have been in need of 
ever since we commenced our investigation. The percentage of juice obtained from 
a certain variety of cane is of as great importance as the composition of the juice, 
and this we are now able to determine with accuracy by means of this mill." 

By putting a pulley on the No. 2 Pioneer it can be run by power and made to do 
a sufficient amount of work for small operators 



16 




DIAMOND No. 1. 

Three-Roller, Self -Adjusting Vertical Mill. 
Main Roller, 10 X 7. Weight, 500 Lbs. 

There has always been a demand for a very cheap vertical, three-roller mill, and 
we have been often requested to construct such a mill embodying our patented im- 
provements, but we have always refused to do so because the price of iron has ruled 
so high -for many years past that we knew a thoroughly reliable and efficient mill 
could not be afforded for the low price at which some manufacturers were selling 
small mills. We were unwilling to damage our reputation for first-class machinery 
by making small mills with cast iron rollers, taken out of the sand and thrown to- 
gether, or by makiug them so small and weak that they could have no adequate 
strength nor capacity. But now the price of iron having fallen sufficiently to per- 
mit making a small and cheap three-roller mill, with strength sufficient to be reliable 
and capacity enough to be useful, we have constructed the No. 1 Diamond Mill 
represented by the above engraving. 

This mill has nearly twice the strength and capacity of any other mill of the same 
price in market. We have endeavored to make the mill just as perfect in every 
respect as human ingenuity could make it. Heavy wrought iron shafts and bolts are 
used of the same size as those used in our Samson mill. The small rolls are cast solid, 
heavy wrought iron stay-bolts take the strain, and the patent rubber cushions render 
the rollers self-adjusting. Set screws are provided for adjusting the feed roller. We 
estimate this mill to be one-half strouger than the Samson in proportion to its ca 
pacity, and, as the Samson is the strongest mill of its size heretofore put into the mar- 
ket, this is saying much for it. In style and beauty this mill is unsurpassed, and in 
workmanship and material it is equal to the most expensive mill we make. We take 
^reat pride in being able to offer to our friends so good a mill at so low a price. 



jl7 




DIAMOND MILLS. 

Three-Roller, Self-Adjusting-, Vertical, Animal Power Mills. Two Sizes. 

DIAMOND No. 2. 
DIAMOND No. 3. 



Main Roller, 12 X 8. 
Main Roller, 14 X 10. 



"Weight, 700 Lbs. 
"Weig-ht, 1,000 Lbs. 



In many countries where the cane grows very luxuriantly and large, there is a 
growing demand for extra heavy and strong vertical mills for horse power, embody- 
ing the latest improvements. To meet this demand we have constructed the 
Diamond Mills represented by the above engraving. 

The mills are made stronger and heavier in proportion to the capacity of the roll- 
ers than any mills that have heretofore been put into the market. They embody all 
of our patented improvements, and combine all the best results of our long experi 
ence in manufacturing sugar mills for all the sugar-growing countries of the world. 

The forged wrought iron shafts are much larger and stronger than are ordinarily 
used in mills of this size and run in brass boxes. Very heavy wrought iron stay- 
bolts take the strain, and our patent rubber springs render the rollers self-adjusting. 
Set screws are provided for the feed rollers to adjust them to any size of cane. In 
style and workmanship these mills are superior to any vertical mills that we have 
ever put into market, and there is nothing else in market that can compare with 
them. We offer these mills to our friends with full confidence that they will give 
perfect satisfaction to all who want extra heavy and stout vertical mills, embodying- 
al! modern improvements, for grinding the largest tropical cane. 




THE PEARL. 

Horizontal, Self-adjus-ting Animal-power Mills. Four Sizes. 



PEARL No. 1. 
PEARL, No. 2. 
PEARL No. 3. 
PEARL No. 4. 



Main Roller, 8 X 8. 

Main Roller, 10 X 10. 

Main Roller, 10 X 12. 

Main Roller, 12 X 16. 



Weight, about 800 Lbs. 
Weight, about 1,200 Lbs. 
Weight, about 1,400 Lbs. 
Weight, about 3,000 Lbs. 



Oar " Croncher" Mills have met with such great favor as Animal-power Mills, that we have been induced 
to construct some new sizes embodying the patented principles that have proved so successful in the Cbonch- 
ers, with additional improvements that experience and the suggestions of our patrons have shown to be 
desirable. 

These new sizes we have named " Pearl," and they are represented by the above engraving. The horse- 
power and the mill are combined in the mo*t compact, symmetrical and durable form possible. The crown 
wheel, through which motion is given to the rollers, is held firmly in place under the bridge-tree by a stout 
wrought iron shaft, running through a long box in the bridge-tree, and connecting with the sweep-cap to which 
the animals are attached. Extra heavy ana strong gears are used, and the wrought iron shafts are of extra 
size, and run in brass boxes. Heavy wrought iron stay bolts hold all parts firmly in place. Our patent Rubber 
Springs render the rollers self-adjusting, and the wrought iron strap bolts take the strain of the rollers. Set 
screws are provided to adjust the rollers to any size of cane. Extra strength in proportion to their capacity is 
given to these mills, to enable them to grind the largest and hardest tropical cane. 

These mills can be changed to steam or water-power mills, like the "Uem," by removing the crown wheel 
and pinion, and substituting a back-gear and pinion, so that the purchaser can commence with animal-power 
and afterwards change to steam or water-power, or by buying a back-gear and pinion with the mill, he can 
alternate from animal to water or steam-power at pleasure In workmanship, style, symmetry and beauty, 
these mills are nnequaled, and wo take groat pleasure in being able to oiler to our friends such beautiful and 
etflcient mills at such very low prices. 



19 




THE RUBY. 

Horizontal, Self-adjusting-, Sweep-below Animal-power Mills. Four Sizes. 

RUBY No. 1. Main Roller, 8x8. Weight, about 900 Lbs. 

RUBY No. 2. Main Roller, 10x10. Weight, about 1,300 Lbs. 

RUBY No. 3. Main Roller, 10x12. Weight, about 1,500 Lbs. 

RUBY No. 4. Main Roller, 12 x 16. Weig-ht, about 3,200 Lbs. 

The frequent calls for sweep-below mills smaller than our " Texas " mills have 
induced us to construct the above series of " Ruby" mills. They correspond in 
sizes and style with our " Pearl" and " Gem " mills which have met with such great 
favor since we introduced them. They embody all our latest improvements, and are 
very heavy and strong in proportion to the capacity of the rollers. Like all our 
mills, they have our self-adjusting springs, wrought iron stay bolts, heavy wrought 
shafts, and brass boxes, and are strong enough in every part to grind tropical cane. 
The advantages of sweep-below mills will be found stated in our description of our 
" Texas " mills, and need not be repeated here. 

We send with each mill a sweep- socket and step for the sweep post. The post 
should be made of a seasoned stick of timber twelve to fifteen inches diameter. If 
at any future time the purchaser wishes to use steam instead of animal-power, these 
mills can be converted into steam mills like the " (iEM " at a small expense. 



;cO 




THE TEXAS. 

Heavy Horizontal Horse Power Mills, with Sweep Below or Sweep Above, 
as desired. Five Sizes. 



TEXAS No. 0. 
TEXAS No. 1. 
TEXAS No. 2. 
TEXAS No. 3. 
TEXAS No. 4. 



Main Boiler, 12 X 15. 
Boilers, 12 X 20. 
Boilers, 12 X 20. 
Boilers, 16 X 24. 
Boilers, 20 X 30. 



Weight, 2,000 Lbs. 
Weight, 3,500 Lbs. 
Weight, 4,100 Lbs. 
Weight, 6,600 Lbs. 
Weight, 13,150 Lbs. 



Our Texas Mills have now been in use many years in many different countries and 
give great satisfaction. They are by far the largest, heaviest and strongest ani- 
mal power mills in market, and possess all the advantages of the best steam power 
mills ; indeed, they can be easily converted into steam or water power mills, and we 
recommend them to all planters who desire to commence with animal power, expect- 
ing to change to steam or water power at some future time. 

There are many advantages in a Sweep Below Mill, when the planter has a proper 
building in which to run it. The mill is placed in the second story of the building, 
and a shaft extends from thence to the ground, to which the team working on the 
ground floor is attached. The team and sweeps are entirely out of the way of the 
mill; the cane can be unloaded from the cart directly into the second story of the 
building, and piled near the mill under cover; the bagasse can be carried by a shule 
iuto the cart and carted off, and the juice spouted to the defecator or evaporator, 
without lifting or pumping. A Feed Table or Cane Carrier can be used with the 
mill as desired. 

The general style of the mill and its housings is similar to our celebrated " Louis- 
iana" Mills, which have met with so great success. The housings are arched and 
stay-bolted ; the rollers are adjustable by set screws ; the main rollers are flanged and 
the gearing very heavy. Rubber springs, wrought iron stay-bolts and heavy wrought 
shafts are used as in all our mills. The mill is very stout and heavy in all its parts, 
and we believe it to be the only Sweep Below Mill in the market fitted to grind the 
Southern cane. We send with each mill a sweep-socket and step for the sweep-post, 
but do not send the post, as that can be better and cheaper made on the plantation 
from a seasoned stick of timber, 12 to 15 inches in diameter. 

The mill is so constructed that if the planter has no suitable building in which to 
run it as a Sweep Below Mill.it can be set on the ground, and the sweep-post extended 
upwards, so as to use as a Sweep Above Mill. And if at any future time he wishes to 
use steam, instead of animal power, it can be converted into a steam mill at a small 
expense by removing the bevel gears and substituting the ordinary back gear. 



21 




THE GEM. 

Separate Horse-power or Small Steam or Water-power Mills. Three Sizes. 

GEM No. 2. Main Roller, 10 x 10. "Weight, about 1,100 Lbs. 

GEM No. 3. Main.Roller, 10 X 12. Weight, about 1,300 Lbs. 

GEM No. 4. Main Roller, 12 X 16. Weight, about 2,500 Lbs. 

The above engraving represents our "Gem" Mills, which are small steam and water-power 
mills, or separate horse-power mills, made strong enough to grind the tropical cane. They are 
the smallest steam and water-power mills we manufacture, and we have taken especial pains to 
make them very strong in proportion to their capacity, to enable them to sustain the great strain 
to which they are liable to be subjected in grinding the hard tropical cane by such power. Our 
patent Rubber Springs also offer an additional safeguard against breakage, and the wrought iron 
stay bolts take the strain of the rollers when working. The gearing is very strong, and the 
wrought iron shafts are of extra size, and run in brass boxes. 

In driving all small sugar mills by steam or water-power, care should be used not to crowd 
the mill beyond its capacity. There is always a temptation to make a small machine do as much 
work as a large one, and as the power in such cases usually over-sizes the mill, there is always 
danger of breakage by attempting to make the machine do more work than the capacity of its 
rollers will permit. No machine can be made so strong that a greater power cannot break it, and 
so long as the power is stronger than the machine, breakage must occur, if the machine is fed 
according to the capacity of the power, instead of according to the capacity of the machine. 
The " Gem" Mills 'ire made amply strong in proportion to the capacity of their rollers to do all 
the work that the rollers can do with proper feeding. They are nearly or quite twice as strong 
as any other mills in market, with the same capacity of rollers. In style and workmanship, they 
are unique and unequaled. 



^2 




THE FLORIDA NO. 1. 

Weight 1400 lbs. main Roller 13x15. 

THE FLORIDA NO. 2. 

Weight 3000 lbs. Rollers 12 x 20. 
For Separate Horse Power, or Small Steam, or Water Power. 

The above cut represents our "Florida" Mills, constructed expressly for grinding 
the Southern or tropical cane. They are constructed with our new style of Heavy 
Arched Housings, similar to our " Louisiana" Mills, with heavy wrought iron stay 
bolts to take the strain. Rubber springs, heavy wrought iron shafts, very strong, 
heavy gearing and flanged rollers are used as in all our mills. The rollers are adjust 
able by set screws, as in the larger mills. We have taken great pains to make them 
abundantly stout for their capacity, and we believe them to be fully as strong in pro- 
portion to* their size and capacity as our celebrated " Louisiana" Mills. 

FLORIDA No. 1 can be driven by our No. 4 Samson Horse Power, and makes 
a very perfect separate Horse Power Mill. It can also be driven by small steam or 
water power, though we would always recommend a larger mill for steam or water 
power. The Florida No 1 can be taken in pieces and transported on mules. 

FLORIDA, No. 2 is, in our opinion, as small a mill as should ever be driven by 
steam or water power. It can be driven by our No. 5 Samson Horse Power, so that if 
the purchaser of the mill does not desire to purchase an engine for the present, he 
can drive the mill by horse power for one or more seasons until his crop will warrant 
him in buying an engine. This renders " Florida" No. 2 an exceedingly desirable 
mill, as it enables the small planter to buy his machinery by degrees, as his crops 
increase and his means accumulate, and he is not forced to incur a heavy debt to 
procure his machinery to start with. 

We can furnish Feed Tables and Bagasse Carriers for our Florida Mills when 
specially ordered, also Counter Shafts and Pulleys. 




THE LOUISIANA MILLS, WITH IRON BED-PLATE. 

Two Sizes. 

LOUISIANA No. 1. Weight, 4,60O Lbs. Main Roller, 16 X 24. 

LOUISIANA No. 2. Weight, 10,500 Lbs. Main Roller, 20 X 30. 

Our Louisiana Mills have proved to bo very popular, since they are the cheapest mills in the market in pro 



i iic auuve engraving represents our jlaiuisiana mii-i^ him an mw. ...~~ -— *--•-- — » 

strong and the mills are first-class in every respect. Though not as heavy as our Niagara Mills, the great 
strength of tha Lake Superior iron of which they are made, while it permits us to furnish them at a lower price 
than the very heavy mills, gives them all needed strength, as ha" ^leen proved by the long-continued use of many 
of these mills in different parts of the world. , ... , ,, 

A Louisiana planter writes us: "The No. 2 Louisiana MiLk bought of you is superior to anything of the 
kind 1 have ever seen. It squeezes all the juice out of the cane. My engineer said he never put up a mill that 
went together so well and fitted so exact, and he had put up a great many different kinds ot mills. He 
said the mechanical work was the best he had ever seen in any mill." A Brazil planter writes: Hie L,ou- 




successfully worked up with the No. 1 Louisiana Mill a crop of eighty-four acres of cane without any break- 
age or loss of time. The mill proved in every way strong and reliable." Another planter writes: ' The Lou- 
isiana No. 1 Mill I bought of you is strong in all its parts, runs easily and never gets out of order. I could 
grind my cane almost to saw-dust. I consider it impossible to mnke any improvement on this mill." 

We have many more such testimonials in reference to these mills that we could give if space permitted, but 
these are enough to prove that they are all we claim for them. 



24 





THE AMERICAN MAMMOTH NO. 1 

Weight, 16,000 Lbs. Main Roller, 24 X 30. Minor Rollers, 20 X SO. 

THE AMERICAN MAMMOTH NO. 2. 

"Weight, 18,000 Lbs. Main Roller, 24 X 36. Minor Rollers, 20 X 36. 

The above cut represents our "Mammoth" Mills, which have been in use for 
nearly ten years, giving great satisfaction to their purchasers. One planter in Lou- 
isiana, who has used a Mammoth for eight years, writes: " In strength, durability, 
workmanship and capacity, it is unsurpassed by any Mill in market of its size. I 
can readily make 300 hogsheads of sugar with it in one and a half month's grind- 
ing." Another Louisiana planter writes : " It has made good your representations 
in every particular and we are more than satisfied with our purchase." Another 
planter writes: " We regard it as absolutely perfect." Such testimonials from 
experienced sugar-planters in reference to these Mills are better proofs of their 
merits than anything we could say. 

These Mills "have our Patent Rubber Springs, which have proved, if possible, 
more useful and desirable in the larger Mills than in the small ones, for with the 
large Mills the cane often accumulates on the carrier and gets tangled, so that some- 
times a large amount is forced into the rollers at once, while at other times very 
little goes in, and the rubber springs are just what is needed to adapt the rollers to 
this inequality of feeding. 

These Mills are well "proportioned, the weight and strength being placed just 
where it is needed, as is proved by the fact that though they are not heavy Mills for 
the size of their rollers, there has been hardly any breakage of any of them in ten 
years' use. We believe them to have a larger capacity and strength than any Mills 
of their price in market, and we recommend them with full confidence that they 
will give good satisfaction to the purchaser. 



26 




THE AMERICAN EVAPORATOR. 



The above cut represents our shallow "American Evaporator. " which is commonly used with 
our smaller sized horse-power mill*. We manufacture five different sizes, from 6 feet to 14 feet in 
length, to adapt them to the different sized mills. It is made of extra heavy rolled iron of an extra 
quality rolled expressly for it, and has iron side-*, ends and partitions, wi h no joint or seam between 
the bottom and sides. Unlike the ordinary evaporators, it has no wood about it to burn out and make 
leaky joints. On this account, as w^ll as on account of the thickness of the iron, it is very durable and 
will last for years with proper care, which mak s it in reality the cheapest Evaporator in the market. 

It is constructed with the special object of reducing to practice the true theory of Evaporation, 
having separate compartments and different degrees of he it f.ir each of the distinct operations of 
defecating, evaporating and finishing. It consists of two loir.! parallel pans, firmly united side by side, 
and used upon a furnace with a single arch or fire-place in front, and with separate fines under each 
pan, from about the middle backwards, and a register damper at the mouth of each Hue, to absolutely 
control the heat under that part of the pan. 

Tight iron gates, wi'h joints planed and ground to a perfect fit, are provided between the compart- 
ments to permit the juice to be drawn from one compartment to the other. The central division is 
lower in the front half of the pan than in the rear to permit the scum to boil over that patt of the par- 
tition and float to the rear end of the pan, at A. where nearly all the skimming is done. This makes 
the operation of it very easy and simple, unci one operator can easily attend to a large pan. A skimmer, 
scoop, strainer and two dampers are scut with each Evaporator. These Evaporators are made of 
galvanized iron or copper when so desired. 

To operate the Evaporator shut the g ctes E and C tight and fill that side of the pan with one or two 
inc' 8 of water to prevent its burning ; then let in the juice at A to the depth of two or three inches 
am. tart the fire. As the juice becomes heate I the scum will rise and float back to A, where it should 
be removed. When the juice is sufficiently defec ited pass the water from the compartment C into the 
finishing compartment V and let the defecated juice into the compartment C. at the same time letting 
fresh juice into the pan at A. When the ju ce at C is boiled down to the finishing point, say i5 to 30 
degress, let the water out of the finishing compartment and let in the juice from C. At the same time 
let the defecated juice follow from B and let in fre-h juice at A. Now the Evaporator is ready for 
regular operation and the work will go forward systematically, the juice following from one compart- 
ment into the next as it is wanted. Each operation of defecating, evaporating and finishing being done 
by itself can be perfectly done, and the juice in every stage is just where it is wanted. The heat under 
the defecating and finishing compartments is under full control by means of the dampers. The danger 
of burning occurs mostly in the finishing compartment when the syrup is thick, and here the heat 
should be very carefully regulated to the condition of the syrup. In emptying the pan at night, the 
syrup should be followed by water to prevent the pin from burning. The syrup is easiest run from 
one compartment to another by means of a sweep or a corn-husk brush of the width of the compart- 
ment. Set the sweep behind the syrup and shove it forward through the gate, at the same time open 
ing the gate behind to let the syrup from the next compartment follow the sweep. 



27 




DIAGRAM OF BRICK ARCH FOR THE AMERICAN EVAPORATOR. 

The above diagram represents the method of constructing the arch for our Amer- 
ican Evaporators. The arch may be built of brick or stone, or any other sub- 
stance that will stand fire, and, where the ground permits, it is well to locate it on a 
hill-side, sufficiently below the mill to allow the juice to run from the mill-tank into 
the evaporator. 

Before building the arch, the surface soil should be removed down to the hard earth, 
to prevent the walls from cracking. The side walls should be from eight to twelve 
inches thick, and thirty inches high above the ground, and long enough to receive the 
pan and flue-cap with iron chimney on top. A brick chimney can be built if desired. 
A division wall four inches thick should extend from the chimney forward, far 
enough for the damper to be located at the front end of it to shut the heat off from 
the finishing compartment when desirable. The grates should be set fourteen to 
sixteen inches below the bottom of the pan, with their rear ends resting upon a cross 
wall which forms the rear of the ash-pit. The side walls should be built so far 
apart that the pan will lap on them only two or three inches, so as to leave nearly 
the whole bottom of the pan available for heating surface. This arch is very cheaply 
and easily constructed. We send with each evaporator full directions for building 
the arch and working the pan. 

These evaporators have been in use for many years, and we have a great many testi- 
monials from men who have used them who have formerly used many other kinds, 
and who say that the American Evaporators are very much superior to any that 
they have ever seen. We manufacture eight sizes of these evaporators, of iron or 
copper, as desired, as follows, viz.: 



No. 1 6 feet long 

No. 2, 8 

No. 3, K) 

No. 4, 13 

No. 5, 14 

No. 5V 2 , 14 

No. 6, ....' 15 

No. 8, 20 



3 l 4 feet wide, 6 inches deep. 



S}£ 


fi 


3& " 





VA " 


6 


3^ " 


t> 


*H " 


10 


4K " 


IT 


4K " 


17 




«AK£ft'CMCAaa 



THE AMERICAN EVAPORATOR. 

* With Portable Furnace. 



For small operations a Portable Furnace and Evaporator is often more convenient 
than a stationary one, and we have therefore constructed a portable furnace for the 
American Evaporator, in which we have endeavored to combine all desirable features. 
The furnace has the same arrangement of flues and dampers as the brick arch, and 
operates in the same manner. It is made of heavy sheet iron, thoroughly riveted, and 
stayed and strengthened by angle iron, and has a heavy cast iron door frame and door 
and flue cap, and heavy cast iron grates. It has wrought iron legs, peculiarly arranged, 
and braced so as to stand very firmly, while for transportation or storage they can be 
folded up so as to occupy little space. It is also provided with a large and stout sheet 
iron chimney, and is all ready to run except the brick lining. Before putting in the 
fire it should be lined throughout the bottom and sides with bricks laid flatwise, to pre- 
vent its burning out. Fire bricks are the best, but ordinary bricks will answer. 

The Evaporator is constructed precisely like the stationary one, described on the 
preceding page, and is operated in the same manner. It will be noticed that the 
''American" Evaporators provide fully for the three distinct jwocesses of evaporation. 
The first compartment, or " Grande," is used for defecation. It is situated at the rear 
end of the evaporator, where the heat is moderate. Here the raw juice is let in and 
gradually brought up to the boiling point, allowing time for the albumen to coagulate, 
and the feculent matter to be thrown up where it can be easily skimmed off. There is 
no violent ebullition here to interfere with the skimming. When sufficiently defecated it 
flows forward to the next compartment, or ''Flambeau," directly over the fire, where it 
is rapidly desiccated, or the watery portion evaporated. From the "Flambeau" it flows 
into the "Cero," on the other side of the pan, but still over the hottest part of the fire 
where the rapid evaporation continues, until it is ready for the " Battery." It will be 
noticed that the greatest part of the evaporation is carried on in the " Flambeau " and 
" Cero," over the hottest part of the fire, and where the evaporating surface is larger, 
consequently the evaporation is exceedingly rapid. 

In the ''Battery" the finishing process is crrried on and the "strike" made. This is 
the process in which there is the greatest danger of burning, and consequently the heat 
should here be under absolute control. This is accomplished by means of the register 
damper, located directly under the commencement of this compartment, by means of 
which the heat can be kept under perfect control, or entirely cut off and thrown up the 
opposite flue and utilized under the " Grande." 

Thus the three distinct processes of defecation, desiccation and finishing, are/it% av* 
perfectly provided for in a most practical manner. 




THE AMERICAN DEEP EVAPORATOR. 



The above cut represents our Deep Evaporator intended for Sugar making, and 
adapted in size to our smaller Horizontal Mills. They are constructed and operated 
upon precisely the same principle as our smaller Evaporator described and illustrated 
on the preceding pages, having compartments corresponding with the " Grande," 
" Flambeau," " Cero," and " Battery," of the Kettle Range. 

The shallow Evaporators can be made into deep Evaporators when desired, simply 
by building the walls of the brick arch thicker and extending them above the sides 
and ends of the shallow Evaporator, flaring or tiling them out, after reaching the 
height of the iron sides of the Evaporator, and lining the flaring portion with 
cement or mortar, as is commonly practiced with kettles. 

There is a " Grande," or defecating compartment in our Deep Evaporator, so that 
there is no necessity for a separate Defecator to work the Evaporator to the best 
advantage. Yet when it is desirable to increase the capacity of the Evaporator it can 
be easily done by adding a Defecator, placing it upon the same arch in the rear of 
the Evaporator. The defecating can then be performed in the separate Defecator 
and the whole capacity of the Evaporator be used for evaporating. We manufac- 
ture Defecators to go with our Deep Evaporators, when wanted. We send with each 
Evaporator plans and instructions for setting up and working them. All our Evapo- 
rators, large and small, shallow and deep, work on precisely the same principle, the 
only difference in them being in their capacity. We make all our Evaporators of 
heavy rolled iron, with iron sides and ends, and the heaviest of them are stayed with 
iron rods. 

These Evaporators have been in use for a number of years and have given better 
satisfaction than any open pans that have yet been introduced, and they are bo cheap 
and so economical of labor and fuel that they are far preferable to kettles for small 
operations. For very large operations where a large crop is to be worked off, planters 
generally prefer kettles. 



>, \ CD 



oo (K'H 




31 



STEAM EVAPORATORS. 

The attention of cane growers is being turned towards steam evaporation, and 
the subject suggests several important questions. Direct fire evaporation is unques- 
tionably more economical of fuel than steam evaporation, for there is necessarily • 
a loss in all secondary applications of heat or power. But as the bagasse will fur- 
nish nearly, or quite, all the fuel needed in either case, this question is not very 
important. Undoubtedly much surer and better results can be obtained by steam 
evaporation than by direct fire. The danger of burning is almost entirely obviated, 
and every stage of the processes of defecating, evaporating and finishing can be 
kept under absolute control. 

But steam apparatus is expensive, and it becomes a question, in each case, 
whether the amount of work to be done will warrant the outlay. Many farmers 
have farm-engines, which they can use to drive the mills, but the boilers usually 
connected with these engines are totally inadequate to furnish the steam for evap- 
orating with apparatus of any considerable dimensions. Those who have had no 
experience in evaporating with steam are very apt to provide too little boiler-power 
to do the work properly. The amount of steam required for evaporation will, of 
course, depend very largely upon the mode of applying it and the kind of apparatus 
used. But, as a general rule, it may be stated that it will require at least twice as 
much steam to evaporate the juice as it will to grind the cane, and it would be bet- 
ter to have three times as much. That is, if the mill requires ten horse-power, the 
boiler for both grinding and evaporating ought to be from thirty to forty horse- 
power. In using steam for any purpose it is always economical to have a surplus of 
boiler capacity, which saves burning and straining the boiler, and also saves fuel. 

As a general rule we should say. that, unless a farmer has more cane to wofk than 
he can grind with a four horse-mill, he would not be warranted in going to the 
expense of putting in steam apparatus for evaporating. 

In response to the call for steam evaporators, we have spent much time and 
money in experimenting to devise an evaporator which should come up to the 
motto which governs us in constructing all our machinery, viz.: " The best in the 
market or nothing." We first tried the ordinary coil running back and forth in 
the bottom of the pan, taking in the steam on one side and letting it run through 
the whole length of the coil and discbarge on the other side. We found that there 
were many serious objections to this style of coil. The steam would become con- 
densed and lose its heating power when about half-way through the coil, and, as a 
consequence, the pan would boil violently on one side and not at all on the other 
side. We then tried letting the steam into the center of the coil, and dividing it 
and letting it run each way and exhaust at each side. The pan would then boil 
violently in the middle and not any at the sides. Besides we found that these 
continuous coils with many elbows were liable to get clogged with the condensed 
water, that they would warp out of shape, that they were very inconvenient to 
clean and rendered the cleaning of the pan very difficult, and that they would be 
very difficult for a farmer to repair when out of order. We concluded that some- 
thing better must be devised which would do away with the many objections which 
we found inherent in the common coil. 

Without detailing our experiments further we will simply say that we finally 
constructed the evaporator represented on the preceding page, as embodying the 
best results of all our effdrts and we offer it to the public believing it to be the 
best steam evaporator yet devised. 



32 

The pan is made or heavy galvanized iron with flaring sides to facilitate skimming, 
angle iron along the edges to stiffen it aud heavy cast-iron ends. A hollow mani- 
fold steam head runs crosswise of one end of the pan, with hollow trunnions pro- 
jecting through the sides of the pan with water-tight joints. The steam pipes are 
each screwed into this head and caps are screwed on the other end of each pipe. 
Inside of each steam pipe is a small exhaust pipe which is screwed into a diaphragm 
which runs longitudinally through the manifold head. The .steam enters through 
the hollow trunnion on one side of the pan and passes into all the steam pipes alike, 
and is exhausted through the small internal pipes which carry it to the other side 
of the diaphragm and it is discharged through the hollow trunnion at the 
other side of the pan. By this arrangement fresh, live steam is furnished to each 
pipe alike and the pan boils all over and the evaporation is very rapid. We found 
that we could evaporate water twice as rapidly with this coil as we could with the 
same number of feet of the old style continuous coil. As rapidity of evaporation 
is an essential feature in reducing saccharine juices this is a very important point 
gained. By means of cocks the amount of steam can be perfectly controlled and 
any desired heat for defecating and finishing obtained. Being hinged on the 
trunnions, the whole coil can be turned up out of the pan for cleaning both coil 
and pan. Each steam pipe being independent can be unscrewed and taken out for 
repairs when necessary, without sending for a plumber. By means of a swing-pipe 
at one end of the pan the liquid can be drawn off to any desired depth or the whole 
can be drawn out. 

For steam pipes, common iron or galvanized, or copper pipes can be used. When 
the evaporator is to be used for concentrating cider, copper pipes are necessary, but 
for saccharine juices we regard iron or galvanized pipes as about as good practically 
as copper. The idea that iron pipes discolor the syrup is a delusion, provided they 
are kept clean. In the tropics the juice is defecated in iron defecators, evaporated 
in iron kettles and finished in iron vacuum pans and no discoloration of the syrup is 
discovered. Copper pipes are so expensive that they almost double the cost of steam 
apparatus, and, unless a man has plenty of money to invest in such an apparatus 
we would not recommend them. 

All the processes of defecating, evaporating and finishing can be carried on in one 
of these evaporators, but it will be necessarily slow, as each process must wait for 
the other. For rapid work we would recommend a full steam train of four evap- 
orators, viz.: Two defecators to be used alternately, one evaporator and one finisher. 
Then all the processes can be carried on at once and the work pushed. For the 
defecators, exhaust steam can be used if desired. The different pans can be. arranged 
so as to draw directly from one to the other. In large establishments working for 
sugar the finishing can be done in vacuum pans if desired. 




SUGAR CENTRIFUGAL NO. 2. 

For Hand or Horse Power. Basket 15 luetics Diameter, 8 Inches Deep 

Hand Centrifugals, cheaply constructed, have occasionally been offered in the 
market, but have proved so worthless, that their manufacture has been abandoned 
A machine requiring so nice an adjustment and so high a speed, cannot be cheaply 
constructed without being worthless. 

If made very small, they are inefficient. If made of cheap materials, they become 
dangerous from their liability to burst. If cheap workmanship is employed, theii 
nice adjustment is lost, and they soon wear out. 

In view of these facts, to answer the demand for hand and small power centri- 
fugals, we haVe constructed the machine represented by the above cut, with a sole 
view to its efficiency, durability and safety, sparing no expense to make it a perfect 
machine of its kind. Of course such a machine cannot be made or afforded at any 
thing like the cost of the worthless machines heretofore put upon the market, but 
our motto is and always has been " the best thing of its kind or none," and we only 
make machinery for those who want the best article in the market. 

The Case is made of solid iron, cast in one piece, and about twice as heavy as is 
usually made. The Basket is made entirely of brass and gun metal of the very best 
quality, and much heavier than usual, to avoid the possibility of bursting. The 
Basket is lined with the heaviest and best German wire-cloth made expressly for this 
purpose. 

The Spindle is made of cast steel. The upper Journal is provided with three brass 
boxes, adjusted with set screws and jam nuts, arranged so as to balance themselves 
equally in the direction of their length upon the points of the set screws, thus 
insuring equal bearing their full length. The oiling arrangements are usually 
very defective in such machines ; to obviate the usual defects in this respect we 
make the hub of the basket hollow, and fill the cavity with wool or cotton, into 
which nearly one-half pint of oil is poured. The oil then feeds itself very gradually 
through a groove, down the shaft to the lower journals, insuring perfect lubrication 
with, little attention. 

We furnish all the wood work with the machine when desired. When the wood 
work is not desired on account of the expense of transportation, we furnish the 
necessaiy bolts and drawings, showing the dimensions and construction of the wood 
work. An extra basket is very convenient, so that one basket can be emptied and 
changed while the other is in motion. 

Of course a machine running at so high a speed, must use up power rapidly, and 
this machine runs rather heavy for a hand machine, but a smaller machine would 
have so little efficiency as n-. b to be worth its cost. We arrange this machine to be 
run by horse, steam or water power when so desired. 

We also manufacture a 24-inch Centrifugal for steam or water power. 



34 




SUGAR CENTRIFUG-AL NO. 3. 

For Steam or Water Power. Basket 24 Inches dlam., 12 inches deep. 

The above cut represents our No. 8 Centrifugal for steam or water power. It is 
very thoroughly made in all its parts of the best material, as a machine having so 
high a velocity must necessarily be in order to be good for anything. 

The case is made of solid iron, cast in one piece, and very heavy. The basket is 
made of brass and lined with the best German brass wire-cloth made expressly for 
this purpose. The spindle is made of cast steel. The upper journal is provided 
with three brass boxes adjusted with a sleeve-nut below which adjusts all three of 
the boxes at once. The hub of the basket is made hollow to be filled with wool or 
cotton, into which a pint of oil may be poured which will then feed itself as wanted 
to the upper journal insuring perfect lubrication. 

The arrangement of counter-shaft and pulley varies according to circumstances, 
depending upon the position in which it is desired to place the Centrifugal, and the 
kind of motor by which it is to be driven. The above cut represents one (and per- 
haps the most common) method of arranging the counter-shaft, but other methods 
are equally applicable to the machine. 

Parties ordering this Centrifugal should state the kind of motor by which it is to 
be driven, the speed of the motor, the size and speed of the pulley from which it is 
intended to drive the Centrifugal, the direction in which this pulley revolves and the 
relative position in which it is desired to set the Centrifugal, and then we can arrange 
the counter-shaft, pulley and connections in the best manner to give the machine the 
proper speed. The basket should make from 1,200 to 1,500 revolutions per minute. 

This machine can be made in sections for transportation on mule back when so 
iesired 




SAMSON HORSE POWER NO. 5. 

For Six or Fight Horses. Weight 1400 lbs. 



We constructed our series of Samson Horse Powers expressly for Southern plantation 

se, where the ordinary Horse Powers in the market have proved to be utter failures 
tmd of no account. Our aim was to make these powers so simple that the dullest mind 
could comprehend them, and so strong that the most blundering carelessness could not 
break them, and at the same time adapt them to all the various needs of the plantation. 
That we have succeeded in accomplishing what we aimed at is abundantly proved by 
the great success they have met and the great popularity they have attained whereve; 
they have been introduced. During the year 1870 they bore off the First Premium 
from all competitors at the Louisiana State Fair, the Texas State Fair, the Mississippi 
State Fair, the Mobile Fair, the Selma Fair, and in fact at every Fair at which they have 
ever been exhibited. 

It is utterly impossible to conceive of a Horse Power more simple than our Samson. 
A heavy timber frame bolted together, sustains a massive master wheel, with heavy 
patent Flanged Gearing, running upon a heavy Flanged Pinion. Can anything be more 
simple ? * 

Then consider its strength. The wheels are so massive and the cogs so large and 
strengthened by flanges that no power which it is possible to bring to bear upon them 
can break them. The Main Driving Shaft is of heavy wrought iron, and the Counter 
Shaft and Tumbling Rod nearly twice as heavy as in' ordinary powers. No weight of 
metal has been spared to place its strength beyond all question. 

Then examine the devices to ensure durability and perfect adjustability. The top box 
or hub of the Main Shaft is a heavy casting sustained by cross trees, which, at the same 
time, brace the Main Frame, and prevent all twisting and warping. Peculiar Babbited 
Bushings are fitted to this box and adjusted by set screws. The lower box or step is 
Babbited, made oil tight, and has a friction plate upon which the bottom of the shaft 
runs. This box is perfectly adjustable in either direction upon the bridge tree by wedges. 
A guide roller runs on top of the master wheel over the pinion to keep it to its work. 
Altogether we believe our Samson Horse Power to be the perfection of Simplicity. 
Strength and Durability. 

We manufacture four sizes of the Samson Powers, Nos. 3. 4. 5 and, 6. No. 3 is a small 
power, intended for two horses, and adapted to driving a 30 to 40 Saw Gin. No. 4 is a 
stout four horse power, adapted to driving a 40 to 50 Saw Gin. No. 5 is a six horse 
power, adapted to driving a 50 to 60 Saw Gin. No. 6 is a tremendously heavy and stout 
power, for 8 or 10 horses, and adapted to driving a 60 to SO Saw Gin. All these powers 
are more than twice as heavy and strong as the ordinary powers in market intended for 
the same number of horses. 

We manufacture various sizes of Speed Jacks adapted to our different sized powers, 
by means of which any desired speed may be attained for driving Cotton Gins, Corn 
Mills, Threshers, Saws, Rice Hullers, or any plantation machinery. 

These powers are admirably adapted to driving our Cane Mills, and have just th* 
right speed for that purpose without a speed jack. 



36 




THE BUFFALO POST ENGINE, 



Driving a No. 1 Florida Mill. 
FOUR SIZES. 



No. 1, 3 Horse-Power, Cylinder 3 
No. 2, 5 Horse-Power, Cylinder 4 



6. 

8. 



No. 3, 6 Horse-Power, Cylinder 5 
No. 4, 10 Horse-Power, Cylinder 6 



10. 
12. 



The great increase in the use of steam, both for driving the mill and for evapo- 
rating, has created a demand for a different class of engines and boilers from those 
usually found in the market. The farm engines in common use have barely suffi- 
cient boiler capacity to drive the engine, while the steam evaporators require two or 
three times as much steam as the engine; hence it is necessary for those who desire 
to both grind and evaporate by steam to have a boiler of three or four times the 
capacity of the one usually furnished with the engine. Frequently second-hand 
boilers can be found near home that will answer the purpose, and the farmer wants 
only an engine with his mill. 

For the farmer who desires an engine only to run a small mill, most of the 
engines in market are too complicated and expensive, and to meet his requirements 
we have constructed a series of simple post engines, represented in the above cut, 
which are cheap and, at the same time, well made, strong and effective ; they can be 
bolted either to an upright post or to a horizontal beam or timber, and thus the 
weight and expense of a heavy bed-plate and foundation are dispensed with. The 
crank of the engine connects directly with the line shaft, on which pulleys can be 
located for driving mill, centrifugal, pump, etc., or a threshing machine, and any 
other machinery can be driven from the same shaft. These engines are as simple as 
it is possible to make an efficient engine, and yet contain all the necessary parts, 
including pump and governor. All the working parts are made as carefully as the 
most expensive engine, the saving being chiefly in the weight of metal and not in 
the labor expended on the working parts. Their prices are low, and we feel confi- 
dent that they will fully meet the wants of those farmers who want small engines 
to drive small cane mills. 

As is the case with all quick-motioned engines, a double back-gear is necessary to 
connect them with the mill, in order to get the speed of the rollers slow enough. 



37 




AMERICAN VERTICAL STEAM ENGINE. 

The above cut represents our Vertical Steam Engines, which are especially adapted 
for driving our Sugar Cane Mills. Long stroke engines are required to drive a cane 
mill to the best advantage, and we therefore make our engines with longer stroke 
than is usual with ordinary engines. They are made very strong, and as simple as 
possible, all unnecessary parts being dispensed with. Great pains has been taken to 
construct the engine so that every part can be conveniently reached for alterations 
or repairs, and so that when repairs are necessary they can be made in the most 
simple and expeditious manner. They are, therefore, peculiarly adapted to those 
countries where few machine shops or conveniences for repairing are found. Ver- 
tical engines are coming more and more into use on account of their simplicity, 
durability and compactness, and are admirably adapted to driving Sugar Cane Mills. 

We manufacture six sizes of these engines, from six to forty horse power, adapted 
to the various purposes for which engines of like power can be used. The smallest 
size is constructed in sections for transportation on mules. 



38 




HERCULES ENGINES. 

Medium Stroke, Horizontal Engines. Eight Sizes, from. 12 to 50 Horse-power. 

The above engraving represents our Hercules Engines, which are medium 
stroke, horizontal engines, and are suitable for running any kind of plantation 
machinery. When sugar mills are driven by these engines the mills should gener- 
ally be double geared to give the rollers the proper speed. These engines are 
thoroughly well made in every particular, of the best materials, and cannot fail to 
give good satisfaction. 

The cut on the next page represents our Long Stroke Buffalo Engines, which 
are especially adapted to driving large sugar mills. In these engines we use the 
Double Buffalo Rotary Valves. These valves are similar to the celebrated 
Corliss valve, and are located near each end of the cylinder, cutting off short, and 
preventing the enormous waste of steam required to fill the ports when there is but 
a single valve located in the centre of the cylinder. In long stroke engines this is an 
important item, amounting to a saving of 10 to 20 per cent, of the steam. The 
rotary valve has proved to be much more durable than the old style slide-valve, and 
is rapidly coining into general use. We can furnish the slide-valve for those who 
desire it, and the diagram on the preceding page represents our Long Stroke 
Buffalo En-tune, with Slide-valve. 

These engines are thoroughly made of the best materials, are simple in construc- 
tion, easily managed and very durable. 



99 




LOCOMOTIVE BOILER. 

The above cut represents our Locomotive Boiler, which is often the most con- 
venient style of boiler for small and medium sized engines, as it requires no brick 
work and can easily be moved from place to place and set up almost anywhere. It 
is a tubular boiler, made of the best materials in the most approved manner. The 
grates, and fire-front are all constructed in the front shell, and the boiler is all com- 
plete with steam-gauge, safety-valve, gauge-cocks, etc. — everything complete to run 
except smoke-stack. We can furnish smoke-stacks, if desired, at the prices named 
in our list, but as they are bulky to ship it is often cheaper to procure them where 
the boiler is to be used. 

The first engraving upon the next page represents our Two-flue Boilers, and 
the second engraving our Tubular Boilers. We do not usually put a steam dome 
on the smallest-sized two-flue boilers unless it is specially ordered, as there is no 
necessity for it on very small boilers. These boilers are made of the best quality of 
C. H. No. 1 American Charcoal Iron, stamped by government inspector, which is the 
best boiler iron in the world. They are all thoroughly made in the best possible 
manner. We can furnish either style of boiler desired with any sized engine. The 
prices of engines and boilers in our list include grates, fire-front, steam-gauge, 
gauge-cocks, safety-valve, and everything complete except cold-water pipe and 
smoke-stack. 



40 




TWO-FLUE BOILER. 




TUBULAR BOILER. 



HINTS TO THOSE ORDERING MACHINES AND REPAIRS. 



NAME. 

Pearl r ^ 

exact size and style of machine wanted. To make the matter doubly sure? the faf to the 

catalogue containing the illustration of the machine can be cut out and sent with the order 

It the machine is to be driven by power already provided, we should be informed of the 
speed, diameter and width of face of the driving pulley or gear. For instance, if the 
machine is to be driven by a steam engine already in use, we should know the number of 
revolutions per minute made by the engine shaft when doing ordinary work, and the dia- 
meter and width of face of the driving pulley. If we are desired to furnish a pulley for 
the engine shaft, the exact size of the shaft and the depth and width of the key-seat should 
be given. If the machine is to be driven from a line of shafting already provided the 
speed of the line and the diameter and face of the driving pulley should be given If the 
machine is to be driven by a water-wheel already built, we should know the number of 
revolutions per minute of the wheel when at work, also the diameter and face of the pulley 
or gear on the water-wheel shaft. If we are desired to furnish a pulley or gear to go on 
the end of the water-wheel shaft, we should have a sketch of the size and shape of the 
end of the shatt. It is also well to give us the diameter of the water-wheel, length of 
the buckets, and quantity of water, so that we may judge of the amount of power it fur- 
nishes. If the machine is to be driven by a horse-power already provided we should bd 
informed of the number of revolutions per minute of the driving shaft or tumbling-rod 
when the animals are walking at their average speed, and the diameter and face of "the 
gear or pulley. If a speed jack is used, then we should know the speed, diameter and 
face of the pulley on the speed jack. 

If a pulley is ordered to fit a shaft, the exact diameter of the shaft and width and 
depth of key-seat should be given. If a gear is ordered to fit another gear, t*he diameter 
and face of the gear, and the number and pitch of the teeth, the size of the eye and key- 
seat, should be given ; also whether it is a spur (straight) or a bevel (angular) gear 
Always state whether the measurements are English, Spanish or French. 

In ordering gears, pulleys and other things, when exact sizes and proportions are not 
essential, it is well to give us a. little discretion, as we may not have the patterns of the 
exact size given, but, as we have a very large stock of patterns, we may have those so 
near the size that it will make no practical difference, and in such case the purchaser would 
be saved the expense of making special patterns. Patterns are always expensive, and the 
cost of them may often be saved by a slight variation of dimensions. 

When water-wheels are ordered, we should always be informed of the quantity of 
water and height of fall. If the quantity of water is small, it is important to know 
whether there is a reservoir or pond where the water can accumulate during the night, or 
when the wheel is not in use. It is also desirable to send us a sketch of the stream and 
ground, showing where it is desired to locate the wheel and machinery. 

In ordering kettles, it is always better to order our standard sizes, as we have patterns 
for no other sizes, and such patterns are very expensive. 

REPAIRS. — In ordering parts for repairs, it is well to cut from the catalogue or any 
periodical that may contain it, the engraving of the machine and mark the piece wanted. 
If this cannot be done, a rough sketch of the form and dimensions of the piece with the 
name and number of the machine should be furnished. All of our machines of the same 
kind and size are precisely alike, made from the same patterns, and the parts are inter- 
changeable, with the exception of some sizes in which we- have made improvements. In 
the case of improvements some of the parts of the machine which were made previous to 
the improvements, differ from those made since. To meet such cases, we have devised a 
system of registration, by which every machine that we make has its own distinct 
number, and is registered. Whenever any change is made in any part of any machine, 
the change is noted on the register, and the date of sale of the machine, and to whom 
sold is also noted. Take, for instance, Samson Sugar Mill No. 967, there is no other Samson 
Sugar Mill in existence having that number on it. Therefore, if the person who owns that 
mill should write to us for repairs and give us that number, we could, from our register, 
tell at once whether any part of that mill differed in any particular from the Samson 
Mills we are making to-day, and could be sure to send just the right piece, and so of every 
size and kind of machine we make. It is, therefore, important for parties ordering repairs 
to give us the special number of the machine. If the number has become obliterated, let 
us know when, where and through whom the machine was ordered. If ordered by your 
merchant through a merchant in this country, give us both names if possible, as we may 
have only the name of the merchant in this country through whom the machine w r as 
ordered. " We can then probably trace out the number from our register. To guard against 
the loss ot the number, it is well for the purchaser to make a record of the number when 
he receives the machine, also the date of the purchase and the name of the party through 
whom it was ordered, and then he can always refer to this record when ordering repairs. 

Careful attention to the foregoing hints will obviate delays and preclude mistakes in 
filling orders. 



.IBRARY OF CONGRESS 




